Overcoming Isometrics And Breathing Explained
“Later. Now is the time to breathe. Go Ahead.”
The boy inhaled thinly, exhaled an asthmatic wheeze, then coughed.
“Tsk, tsk… terrible;e. You cheat yourself, little friend. The air is free. Look like this.” Volanko sucked in air through his nose while bringing his hands together over his head. Then he exhaled through his mouth and pumped his arms, working his lungs like bellows. “Breathing is life, Yousselle. Without air, the fire dies. Now try again.” (7 Spielman, The Spiritual Journey of Joseph Greenstein)
“Happily, anyone, be he large-boned can get a big, roomy chest if he practices deep breathing. Most people think that the only reason for cultivating the lungs is to promote endurance; whereas big powerful lungs actually add to a man’s strength because they add vastly to his energy.” (126 Leiderman, Secrets of Strength)
Context
I like looking into the past. For some, there’s this perception that humanity is on some kind of forward progress but I believe that this is false and due to a combination of gaps in our understanding of history as well as an optimistic view in the power of human reasoning. I believe that some of our issues today can be solved if we just looked at what worked in the past whether that be health, societal problems, economics, etc.
For me, these old-time strongmen are representative of that. They didn’t have any special equipment, weren’t doing weird balancing exercises, stressed about research studies, didn’t have a specific diet or counted their calories, or were concerned about which pre-workout to take. They just got to it and started exerting their strength either against objects or gravity by moving their body through space and time.
For many of these old-timers, breathing was very crucial to them and “chest-expander” workouts were a thing. The intercostal muscles aid in the expansion of your ribcage during various efforts. If there’s a muscle we better make sure that we are training it.
But what I’ve found with overcoming isometrics over the years is that it forces one to get their breathing in check.
What I mean by this is that with running, calisthenics, and even weight lifting(at certain weights) breathing can go by the wayside or not be improved to a great degree. Swimming, however, will force you to get your breathing in check.
For the individual who does not have access to a pool or if you don’t have access to heavy weights, Overcoming Isometrics will truly test and strengthen your breathing capabilities.
Application
How to go about this? In some of my previous blog posts, I briefly mention the ramp-up and ramp-down periods of overcoming isometrics but I have failed to go in depth up to this point.
Below I have the Archer Push-Press. Archer because my arms are apart like they would be when holding a bow.
Once I get into a position which in this case is the push-up position, having one hand(The Pressing hand) below me and the support hand off to the side, I slowly breathe in for a count of three. Use that Diaphragm and expand that chest. During this time the force my arm is exerting goes from 10%, to 25, 45.316, 76.7, and beyond. Of course, these numbers aren’t exact but the idea is that to ramp up to what force you want to exert for those six, eight, or twelve seconds of isometrics then breathe out for that full duration. So if your force generation phase is eight seconds you will be breathing out slowly for those eight seconds ensuring that it’s not too fast or you’ll run out of air.
Then, once that time is up you slowly breathe back in, relax your muscles, and disengage from the position you were holding for a total of three seconds. Walk around, relax, then head to your next isometric position.
Ways in which to measure this is by compiling a list of overcoming isometric presses, let’s say a list of three. First the wall press, then a behind-the-back tricep press, then an archer pull.
The wall press and the archer pull will contain 6 different positions. The Behind the back tricep press will contain three. Each of these will be for 8 seconds of force generation each, and with 6 total seconds of ramp-up/ramp-down.
So that will be 210 seconds(3.5 minutes) total of concentration whether that’s generating force or actively relaxing.
Wall Press
Left Foot Forward 8 Seconds
Right Foot Forward 8 Seconds
Left Foot Middle Position 8 Seconds
Right Foot Middle Position 8 Seconds
Left Foot Back Position 8 Seconds
Right Foot Back Position 8 Seconds
Behind-Back Tricep Press (Can be performed with a Towel)
Hands Close Position 8 Seconds
Hands Middle Position 8 Seconds
Hands Far Position 8 Seconds
Archer Pulls(Can be performed with a Towel)
Left-Hand @ Right Bicep Position Pull 8 Seconds
Right-Hand @ Left Bicep Position Pull 8 Seconds
Left-Hand Close Shoulder Line Position Pull 8 Seconds
Right-Hand Close Shoulder Line Position Pull 8 Seconds
Left-Hand Far Shoulder Line Position Pull 8 Seconds
Right-Hand Far Shoulder Line Position Pull 8 Seconds
See how well you do. Were you able to stay consistent with breathing out for the full 8 seconds? If not, have a longer rest between force generation phases next time. And if next time you are consistent with breathing out for eight seconds in all your positions, decrease the rest little by little each week.
Isometrics require intense focus for a short period of time but the benefits are immense. I know every form of exercise has mood-improving benefits but I believe Isometrics is one of the best. They leave you feeling energized better than any other thing that’s out there. I have been doing or am doing, calisthenics, weight lifting, swimming, long-distance running, and many others. However, there is one thing I believe that beats overcoming isometrics for its benefits and that is walking but I’ll cover this later this week.
Now there are several old-school isometric books out there. I’ve seen a few that advocate holding your breath during the force generation phase but this should be an obvious red-flag for even something less drastic can do damage. For example, the Valsalva maneuver which contains some degree of breathing out against strong resistance, can, “Impose negative hemodynamic effects on the cardiovascular system, e.g., increased blood pressure, increased heart rate, and risk of a cerebral hemorrhage.”
Variations
But If you can’t do the full eight seconds then stick with six seconds overcoming isometric durations for the meantime and improving that over time. As long as you do something you’re on the right track.
If you decide to perform overcoming isometrics for longer periods because you wish to try improving your endurance more directly, I’d recommend using regular but controlled breathing as exhaling for 60-plus seconds is impossible for anybody. This regular breathing may infer with proper/consistent force generation but as with all things they can be trained.
Additional Information
Apart from intercostal muscles which were mentioned at the beginning, one can also improve their ability to transfer oxygen and carbon dioxide to and from the blood. This is referred to as, “Oxygen Diffusing Capability.” But these are the only ways in which our breathing can improve. Because ultimately it's the job of the heart to pump effectively/powerfully and get the proper things to where they need to go.
Thank you for making it to the end. If you have any questions send em.
